Sampling Design for Some Trace Elemental Distributions in New York Bight Sediments

The paper outlines a model to describe the spatial distribution of selected trace elements (chromium, copper, nickel, lead, and zinc) in New York Bight sediments. Empirical tests of the fit of existing data by means of cumulative probability plots on log-normal probability paper and goodness-of-fit tests demonstrate conformity to the log-normal distribution predicted by the model. An adaptive sampling strategy for describing the spatial distribution of the trace elements is developed, based on a knowledge of the sampling distributions of the elements. The spatial distribution of the sampling stations conforms to the expected nonuniformity of the trace metal concentrations of interest, providing for a more efficient allocation of sampling effort.

Saila, SB Professor and research associate, Graduate School of Oceanography, and research assistant, Department of Computer Science and Experimental Statistics, University of Rhode Island, Kingston, R. I.

Anderson, EL Professor and research associate, Graduate School of Oceanography, and research assistant, Department of Computer Science and Experimental Statistics, University of Rhode Island, Kingston, R. I.

Walker, HA Professor and research associate, Graduate School of Oceanography, and research assistant, Department of Computer Science and Experimental Statistics, University of Rhode Island, Kingston, R. I.